James Dolena (1888–1978) was a Russian-born American architect who designed many houses in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Early life

James Dolena was born in Russia on May 17, 1888.Pacific Coast Architecture Database
/ref> He emigrated to the United States in 1905.Sam Watters, ''Houses of Los Angeles: 1920-1935'', Acanthus Press, 2007, p. 36

/ref> He was trained as an architect and a painter.

Career

Dolena first moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

to install a mural with Hubert Valentine Fanshaw, and spent the rest of his life there. In 1926, Dolena designed a house for the silent actor

Hobart Bosworth Hobart Van Zandt Bosworth (August 11, 1867 – December 30, 1943) was an American film actor, director, writer, and producer. Bosworth began his career in theater, eventually transitioning to the emerging film industry. Despite a battle with ...

, a 3.2-acre mansion located at 809 North Hillcrest Road in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...

.Pacific Coast Architecture Database: William Powell House
/ref>Hamish Bowles
Kelly Wearstler: The Bold And The Beautiful
, ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** '' Vogue Adria'', a fashion magazine for former Yugoslav countries ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ' ...

'', October 01, 2009Emily Eerdmans, Kelly Wearstler, ''Regency Redux: High Style Interiors: Napoleonic, Classical Moderne, and Hollywood Regency'', Rizzoli, 2008, p.

/ref> The interiors were designed by

William Haines Charles William Haines (January 2, 1900 – December 26, 1973) was an American actor and interior designer. Haines was discovered by a talent scout and signed with Goldwyn Pictures in 1922. His career gained momentum when he received favo ...

and the gardens by Benjamin Martin Purdy. In 1933,

William Powell William Horatio Powell (July 29, 1892 – March 5, 1984) was an American actor, known primarily for his film career. Under contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the ''The Thin Man (film), Thin M ...

and

Carole Lombard Carole Lombard (born Jane Alice Peters; October 6, 1908 – January 16, 1942) was an American actress, particularly noted for her energetic, often off-beat roles in screwball comedies. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Lombard ...

purchased the house, and the following year, Dolena redesigned it. In 1969, the producer Albert R. Broccoli bought it, and in 2005, the interior designer

Kelly Wearstler Kelly Wearstler (; born November 21, 1967) is an American designer. She founded her own design firm Kelly Wearstler Interior Design (or KWID) in the mid-1990s, serving mainly the hotel industry, and now designs across high-end residential, comme ...

bought it. In 1931, Dolena designed the Garden Apartment and Retail Shop, an apartment house in

Westwood, Los Angeles Westwood is a commercial and residential neighborhood in the northern central portion of the Westside (Los Angeles County), Westside region of the city of Los Angeles, California. It is the home of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCL ...

. The following year, in 1932, he designed the private residence of film director Richard Wallace in

Bel Air, Los Angeles Bel Air (or Bel-Air) is a residential neighborhood on the Los Angeles Westside, in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains in the U.S. state of California. Together with Beverly Hills, California, Beverly Hills and Holmby Hills, Bel Air fo ...

.Pacific Coast Architecture Database: Mr and Mrs Richard Wallace House
/ref> Later in 1932, he designed the private residence of actress

Constance Bennett Constance Campbell Bennett (October 22, 1904 – July 24, 1965) was an American stage, film, radio, and television actress and producer. She was a major Cinema of the United States, Hollywood star during the 1920s and 1930s; during the early 193 ...

Holmby Hills, Los Angeles Holmby Hills is a neighborhood on the Westside of Los Angeles, California, United States. The neighborhood was developed in the early 20th century by the Janss Investment Company, which developed the rest of Westwood, Los Angeles as well as oth ...

. In 1936, he designed the home of Ingle Barr, a renowned book collector, in

.Pacific Coast Architecture Database: Ingle Barr House
/ref> From 1934 to 1937, he designed the

Farmers Market A farmers' market (or farmers market according to the AP stylebook, also farmer's market in the Cambridge Dictionary) is a physical retail marketplace intended to sell foods directly by farmers to consumers. Farmers' markets may be indoors or ...

in the

Fairfax District, Los Angeles The Fairfax District is a neighborhood in the Central Los Angeles, Central region of Los Angeles, California. Historically the Fairfax District has been a center of the History of the Jews in Los Angeles, Jewish community in Los Angeles. It is ...

.Pacific Coast Architecture Database: Farmers Market
/ref> From 1937 to 1939, Dolena designed Casa Encantada located at 10644 Bellagio Road in

for Hilda Boldt Weber, heiress to the Charles Boldt Glass Co.Pacific Coast Architecture Database: Casa Encantada
/ref> The interiors and furniture were designed by T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbings. It spans and has sixty-four rooms. In 1950, hotelier

Conrad Hilton Conrad Nicholson Hilton (December 25, 1887 – January 3, 1979) was an American hotel magnate and politician who founded the Hilton Hotels chain. From 1912 to 1916, Hilton was a Republican representative in the first New Mexico Legislature ...

purchased it for $225,000. He sold it to David H. Murdock for $12.4 million in 1979.

Gary Winnick Gary Winnick (October 13, 1947 – November 4, 2023) was an American billionaire businessman, industrialist, and investment banker. He served as the chairman and CEO of Winnick & Company, a private equity firm that he originally established a ...

purchased it for $94 million in 2000. From 1937 to 1940, Dolena designed the Boddy House for

Manchester Boddy Elias Manchester Boddy (; November 1, 1891– May 12, 1967) was an American newspaper publisher. He rose from poverty to become the publisher of a major California newspaper and a candidate for Congress. His estate, Descanso Gardens, was deeded ...

on the grounds of

Descanso Gardens Descanso Gardens is a botanical garden located in La Cañada Flintridge, California, La Cañada Flintridge, Los Angeles County, California. It sits on the northern edge of the San Rafael Hills. Descanso Gardens features a wide area, mostly f ...

La Cañada Flintridge, California La Cañada Flintridge, commonly known as just , is a city in the foothills of the Verdugo Mountains in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located in the Crescenta Valley, in the western edge of the San Gabriel Valley, it is the l ...

. In 1939, he designed the private residence of

George Cukor George Dewey Cukor ( ; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer, producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO Pictures, RKO when David O. Selzn ...

.Pacific Coast Architecture Database: George Cukor House
/ref> William Haines was the interior designer. The same year, he designed the house of Col. David L. Reeves in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...

. In 1940, he designed the B.T. Gate House in

Brentwood, Los Angeles Brentwood is a suburban neighborhood in the Westside region of Los Angeles, California. History General Modern development began after the establishment of the Pacific Branch of the National Home for Disabled Soldiers and Sailors in the ...

.Pacific Coast Architecture Database: B.T. Gate House
/ref> In 1949, Dolena designed the Walt Disney Estate, a 5,669-square-foot, seventeen-room mansion, for

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...

and his wife

Lillian Disney Lillian Marie Disney ( Bounds; February 15, 1899December 16, 1997) was an American ink artist at the Walt Disney Animation Studios and the wife of Walt Disney from 1925 until his death in 1966. Born in Spalding, Idaho, Disney graduated from hig ...

Personal life

Dolena lived in

, in a house he designed in 1935.Bruce David Cohen, 'A Dolena legacy: refurbishing the architect's classic house in Los Angeles', ''Architectural Digest'', 47: 10, 164-171, 227, 9/1990 Dolena died on June 12, 1978, in

Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dolena, James 1888 births 1978 deaths Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States Architects from Los Angeles People from Brentwood, Los Angeles